You have probably, dear friends and journal, gathered by now I wished I could live in the counrtyside of Oxfordshire proper or in Oxford City. Drug dealers and tarts and Jeremy Kyle rejects in the neighbourhood is one thing - or more kinldy, surrounded by Jacqueline Wilson single parent families to our Cathy Cassidy one - but 11 police cars and vans and a police helicopter in the air for nearly 48 hours is a bit scary. To start of with I got all huffy and lefty and full of righteous indignation - how dare they harrass the travellers like this, and so on, but a bit of applied logic and actually, the cops were here to protect the travellers!

A few miles away, near the A34 a great new housing developent is being built - 3, 500 house spanning four parishes and two district councils which will make things are bit of a logistical nightmare but Oxford County Council is not good at long term planning. Anyhow, the travellers had been evicted from the site near the development and, Havng one of their member heavily pregnant and very ill in the heatwave made it as far as our park by the shops. They parked up as far from the playpark and skateboard park as possible, along the back by the train line. They were given leave to stay until today, Sunday, due to the health of the young women.

Enter the teens of the estate - they barricaded the made road under the rail bridge demanding that the travellers be moved on immediately.In the meantime, some more of the thickset, no neck brigade spilled out of the pub armed with sticks, etc, determined to move the travellers on. Hence the heavy police presence. I a so ashamed to even, by association of living here, be part of such an intolerant community.

The travellers left on Thursday morning. I only home the pregnant young woman was safe enough to travel and they had received news of a more secure site and not that they had been driven out by fear.

I had a quick look at the local paper's website, but no joy. As this happened Weds/Thurs it's not surprising as the paper edition comes out on a Thursday. I will look again for you Thurdsay and send you the link if there is anything, but often these flash in the pan things often don't get any coverage. I got the infomation as to what was going on from my ex-carer who lives by the park and her father is a retired police inspector and in touch with former collegues. The helicopter circling non stop was scary, but not the first time it has happened, just the longest.

A difficult issue, which was being handled with compassion and people think they know better. Or, as you said it was teens, have nothing better to do. But then I think maybe if you feel you have little or little control, you fight to preserve what you have, even if it is only an illusion. Either way, not a pleasant time for you or your neighbours.I hope and pray that the rest of the summer is more peaceful for you.

Oh gosh how scary for them, and for you. We recently had a mean man at our doorstep abusing us and our religion. It must be more frightening for it to happen when you have no building yo hide in. So glade the police helped out.

Hope all are safe now.

P.S. sorry I haven't been on, forgot my password and then was blocked from in again.

I'm glad to hear from you at last, I was a little worried about your health. I'm so pleased it was just techno/memory problems keeping you from LJ.

You are right, it must have been terrifying, especially when they had no intention of staying long term and one of theri group was poorly. I can only hope they went on to a secure traveller site and are much more settled and the baby was born healthily.

The local rag has been full of anti traveller letters and an article that was about as far from the truth as you could get. it makes me so angry how people had just lable and victimise another group like this and their is no opposition.